Opinion

The CIA could be permanently damaged

Under the plan, Pompeo would probably be replaced at the CIA by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.), one of Trump’s most steadfast defenders and a confidant to some leading members of the foreign policy team, according to the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the White House has not publicly announced the moves.

While Pompeo may or may not do better than Tillerson, it is far from clear that any star player would be asked or would take a job in the three-ring Trump circus. The much more problematic part of this is Pompeo’s replacement.

Cotton, a strident right-winger who has often played defense for Trump and is known by a body of ambitious men and women to be excruciatingly ambitious, would be a controversial choice for CIA director. While Pompeo was also a politician and cultivated a close relationship with the president, he did side with his professionals over the president when Trump disparaged their work or said it was an open question as to whether Russia tried to interfere in our election. Cotton, some foreign policy professionals fear, would politicize and thereby permanently damage the CIA’s reputation.